TT suffer huge defeats at Pan Am Badminton

TRINIDAD AND Tobago suffered huge defeats, in both the male and female categories, on the opening day of the Pan Am Male and Female Continental Badminton Team Championships at the National Racquet Centre, Tacarigua on Thursday.

On the heels of their 5-0 spanking by Jamaica, on Thursday morning, the TT men were brushed aside 4-1 by the United States while, in another evening clash, the national women squad were the recipients of a 5-0 hammering from Guatemala. In the TT-US Group B male clash, the Americans won the first two singles matches – Sattawat Pongnairat strolled past Nathaniel Khillawan 21-6, 21-9 and Ricky Liuzhou defeated Naim Mohammed 21-18, 21-9.

TT’s Renaldo Sinanan earned a hard-fought 19-21, 21-14, 21-19 win over Ryan Chew to reduce the deficit to 2-1.

But the US took care of the two doubles matches. Phillip and Ryan Chew whipped Khillawan and Mohammed 21-9, 21-10 while Liuzhou and Calvin Lin got the better of Sinanan and Anil Seepaul 21-9, 21-9.

Guatemala had an easy time against the TT women, in their Group A duel, as the Central Americans won all five matches in straight sets.

Alejandra Paiz Quan overcame Nekeisha Blake 21-16, 21-17; Diana Corleto Soto squeezed past Avril Marcelle 21-13, 21-8; Mariana Paiz Quan took care of Kerian Quan Chee 21-8, 21-13; Mariana Paiz Quan and Corleto Soto teamed up to defeat Blake and Quan Chee 21-12, 21-13; and the duo of Alejandra Paiz Quan and Ana Albanes Cordon blanked Marcelle and Latoya Walrond 21-17, 21-7.

Last evening, the TT men were due to face the Dominican Republic while the national women were expected to oppose the United States.

The semi-finals are carded to take place today from 10 am while the fifth-place play-off will be contested today from 3 pm.

The final, as well as the third-place play-off, will be staged tomorrow from 9.30 am.

Other countries involved in the four-day event are: Barbados, Canada, Dominican Republic, Guatemala, Jamaica, Mexico, Puerto Rico, Suriname and the United States.